This invention relates to the field of commercial passenger transport aircraft, and in particular relates to an aircraft provided with a new fuselage architecture.
Commercial transport aircraft usually comprise a substantially circular section fuselage divided into an upper portion reserved for passengers and into a lower portion reserved for luggage and/or merchandise as well as for certain onboard service equipment such as electronics bays. The lower portion is sometimes also used to house a fuel tank.
However, the volume available in the lower portion is sometimes under-utilized, in particular with regards to aircraft flying short- and medium-haul routes, for which passengers generally carry a reduced baggage volume.
In this case, the mass and the aerodynamic performance of these aircraft is penalized needlessly, in such a way that the cost price per passenger is not optimal.
Moreover, the wings of such an aircraft are in general connected to the fuselage by means of a wing central spar box arranged within the fuselage, in a non-pressurized zone. Such a central spar box as such induces an irregularity in the shape of the pressurized region of the fuselage. This pressurized region generally comprises the cockpit, the passenger cabin and the cargo hold or holds.
Similarly, the rear landing gears are in general housed in gear compartments each forming a non-pressurized cavity within the fuselage, and therefore also inducing an irregularity in the shape of the pressurized region of the fuselage.
Such irregularities in shape of the pressurized region of the fuselage reduce the natural resistance of the structure of the fuselage to pressurization loads. In order to offset this reduction in the resistance to pressurization forces, aircraft designers are led to increase the mass of the structure of the fuselage, which is penalizing for the performances of the aircraft.